A connection head of the type is known from DE 10 2004 020 133 B3 (corresponding to U.S. application Ser. No. 11/058,624). The connection head is used to connect an absorber cartridge to an anesthetic breathing system or to also replace a used absorber cartridge with a new one even during operation. Valves are used for this purpose within the connection head; on the one hand, these valves bridge over the gas ducts to the absorber in the form of a bypass when the absorber is removed, so that no gas can escape from the anesthetic breathing system. On the other hand, a gas connection is established to the absorber when the absorber cartridge is connected to the connection head.
The valves, which establish or interrupt gas connections, are accommodated in the prior-art connection head in a cylindrical cavity, which is accessible only from the side of the anesthetic breathing system. To clean the valves, the connection head must first be separated from the anesthetic breathing system so that the cover plate fixing the valves can be removed. This makes handling difficult during cleaning, especially because the cover plate is screwed to the housing of the connection head.